Review of Dixie Belle Mineral Chalk Paint

Y’all I’ve been having my fair share of furniture paint projects lately… finishing that epic challenge of a nightstand (click HERE for a beginner’s guide to chalk paint, and HERE for insight on potential chalk paint problems and how to solve them) and now working on my bookshelf – I have been doing so much painting over here!

If you follow me over on Instagram, then you know I took a Dixie Belle Mineral Chalk Paint workshop with my mother-in-law last weekend with Simply Timeless by Sheila. Y’all I flat out loved it! I feel like a traitor, but really I loved the paint. I’ve been using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint for years (and I still love Annie Sloan), but I am soooo excited to dive into Dixie Belle Mineral Chalk Paint. Let’s chat about the different aspects of the paint and why I loved it so much!

1. Consistency of the paint is amazing

The Dixie Belle Paint is extremely easy to work with on a variety of surfaces. I really loved how easy it went on, but also had great coverage. It’s the perfect mix between being thing enough so it glides on easily, but thick enough so it’s opaque. The paint also works really well with water. I was pretty nervous about this aspect, but after playing with it, I am obsessed with using water to create a shading effect with multiple colors of paint. I’m actually thinking of doing this shading technique on our kitchen table.

Annie Sloan also has a pretty great consistency, but I feel like Dixie Belle goes on a bit easier and is a little less thick. However, you can add water to Annie Sloan as well and make the consistency a little thinner. I do feel like adding the water to Annie Sloan impacts its ability to cover though.

2. Variety of colors

Something that I absolutely love about Dixie Belle is the variety of colors!! There are SO MANY colors to choose from… 64 to be exact! You just can’t find that much variety in any other paint line. I’m drawn to the neutral whites, tans, and grays (which they have a ton of shades to choose from), but if you are more of a color girl, you will be obsessed with the variety of options to choose from.

3. You don’t have to wax (unless you want to) – waxes, glazes, and finishes

Okay y’all, lately I have been HATING waxing my larger pieces of furniture. I love waxing smaller projects, like picture frames and candle sticks. But with my larger furniture pieces, I’m not always crazy with how the wax finish feels. I’ve had to put a lot of TLC into working my wax to get it exactly the way I want it to.

Honestly, the reason I decided to do a Dixie Belle class is when I learned that you can seal using a painted finish instead of a wax. You essentially apply this finish on top of the dried paint color and achieve a clear, satin, or gloss finish. They also have Gator Hide which is amazing to seal pieces with a lot of ware and tear (like my kitchen table). I’m excited to use this finish on my table and see how it holds up. You can see all of the types of waxes, glazes, and finishes HERE.

4. Distresses Easily

With Annie Sloan I distress using sand paper and dark wax (find how I do it HERE), which I actually really love. What’s interesting about Dixie Belle though is that you can distress before you seal simply by using a wet rag. I know- I didn’t believe it either. But then I saw it in action, and I was amazed! I need to play with the technique to really figure it out, but it seems like a great way to have better control over the distressed finish.

Dixie Belle also has a variety of wax colors if you are trying to add in that vintage look as well (very similar to Annie Sloan).

5. Problem Solver Products

If you read my recent blog post about chalk paint problems (find it HERE), then you know sometimes furniture pieces can give you a run for your money with problems. Dixie Belle has solved these problems with their Slick Stick, which helps the paint adhere to tricky surfaces, and BOSS, which prevents oils and stains from bleeding through the paint. Lastly, they’re White Lightning is supposed to be the ultimate degreaser and cleaner, even better than the products I’ve been using.

6. Unique and fun finishes!

This aspect of Dixie Belle really sets the brand apart from the rest. I got to play with a few of these and had so much fun!

I specifically used the Patina Collection on mason jars and achieved a blue “rust” look on the bronzed mason jars. I also got to play with the crackle and I’m super inspired to try this little technique on a tray. Lastly, the gilding wax is beautiful and such a fun addition.

7. So many resources online

Whenever I start to use a new paint product, I constantly am looking for resources online to see how others use the paint. Dixie Belle has a HUGE resource on their website HERE which is a great starting point. I’m also really loving their Instagram page @dixiebellepaint which has a ton of inspiration and tips posted constantly.